Gingrich Consulting Firm Files For Bankruptcy

The Gingrich Group LLC, a consulting firm whose work repeatedly ensnared Newt Gingrich's presidential campaign in controversy, has filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy.

Currently operating as the Center for Health Transformation, the firm currently holds assets worth between $50,000 and $100,000 but is saddled with between $1 million and $10 million in liabilities, according to a filing obtained by the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Gingrich vacated his position when he launched his presidential campaign, and the organization has struggled since.

While Gingrich spent part of his campaign positioning himself as a Washington outsider, the Center for Health Transformations offered reminders of his long work and abundant connections in politics. The center's website endorsed a mandate requiring people to purchase health insurance or face a fine, tying Gingrich to a similar measure contained in President Obama's health care overhaul.

Gingrich later clarified that he was opposed to an individual mandate, but the episode underscored the fact that he had supported the concept when it was also favored by Republicans and the conservative Heritage Foundation, before it became a highly charged centerpiece of the Republican party's critique of President Barack Obama.

Freddie Mac Work

The former Speaker of the House also faced criticism over revelations that the Gingrich Group worked with Freddie Mac, the troubled mortgage giant that became a Republican target for its role in the housing crisis. While Gingrich denied he ever worked as a lobbyist, he earned at least $1.6 million for his consulting work for Freddie Mac.

Clients of the Center for Health Transformation paid between $20,000 and $200,000 a year for services rendered, according to a document released by the organization. Since its founding in 2001, the Gingrich Group/Center for Health Transformation generated nearly $55 million in revenue, according to the statement.